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Survey: Iowa hospitals #1 in patient experience

June 4th, 2012 by Ric Hanson

Iowa’s hospitals scored top marks in a U.S. government survey of hospital patients. Scott McIntyre is spokesperson for the Iowa Hospital Association, which represents 118 hospitals in the state. “When patients responded to the survey, considering their overall hospital experience and how they perceived the hospital overall, Iowa was ranked first in the nation tied with two other states,” McIntyre said.

Iowa tied for first with Kansas and Nebraska. The survey was administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Nearly three out of four patients gave Iowa hospitals the highest possible rating — either a 9 or 10 on a 10-point scale. In addition to the overall rating, patients were surveyed about nine other aspects of their hospital experience. Iowa ranked in the top 10 in all nine of those categories. “One area where we faltered a little bit, compared to how well we did in the other areas, was in quietness,” McIntyre said. “That’s always a struggle because it’s tough to keep a hospital as quiet as somebody who’s not feeling well would like it to be. That’s something our hospitals work at continually every day.”

Iowa ranked eighth for hospital quietness. The survey was based on patients discharged from hospitals between July 2010 and June 2011.